Archive for January, 2016

If you love following the trends and incorporating them into your home décor, then you already know we’re excited to have been endowed with not one, but two colors of the year from the powers at Pantone. The lovely Serenity and Rose Quartz interplay with each other allows for a variety of interpretations in styling your home.

We will be offering a series of posts offering ways to add touches of these colors to your décor, specific to your personal style. Since these colors make us feel so peaceful, we chose to start with the Zen style.

This is your style if you love surrounding yourself with natural elements of the earth. You enjoy situating rooms in a way that provide a sense of harmony, balance and flow. You likely already have hardwood floors, cotton and linen fabrics, natural wood furnishings, and accessories from the outdoors. As a lover of all things Zen, you likely prefer a neutral color pallet. Serenity and Rose Quartz play well with the blonde woods and even dark woods you may already have in your home.

If you are crazy for these colors and want to do a total makeover, your Zen style will offer you the perfect backdrop, and you might not even need to replace big items like furniture and larger art. Start by removing all of your accessories, blankets and pillows, anything easily replaceable. Assemble them neatly in one location of your home, away from where you are redecorating. Survey the whole lot and pick a few items you need to keep to be anchors of vignettes you’ll be recreating on tables and bookcases. These should be items that you feel the closest connection to, and cannot think of ever parting with.

Place these back in the room. The rest, you can either store for future use, sell, or give away.

Now, it’s time to shop! Scour flea markets and vintage shops and antique markets, looking for items that make you feel that connection to nature you value in your home. Of course, internet shopping is great, but shopping in places where you can pick up and feel items will help you make better, enduring choices.

Some things to look for with this year’s colors:

Stone and ceramic vases of different sizes

Throw blankets & pillows

Original art works

Area rugs

Accent lamps

As you gather your new collection, play around with different placements until you find the right balance and the colors are interspersed peacefully throughout your home.

Happy, harmonious decorating to you! Do these colors inspire you to redecorate? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!

It doesn’t take a pricey trip to the spa to get a good moisturizing exfoliate. A coconut oil and sea salt scrub is very easy to make and only requires three ingredients; all of which can be found in the grocery store. This particular scrub has the ability to moisturize as you exfoliate. Use the scrub once a week for silky smooth skin, with no added preservatives or chemicals.

This recipe is wonderful if you are attempting to incorporate coconut oil into your daily life. For an original moisturizer, you can mix only coconut oil and olive oil. However, you can also add sea salt to the mix to make an inexpensive product that could serve two purposes; exfoliate and moisturize. No more expensive exfoliating creams! This concoction works much better than anything you can purchase!

What You Will Need:

1 ½ Cup of Organic Coconut Oil

½ Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Cup of Sea Salt

Directions:

Mix all three ingredients in a large mixing bowl by hand. Store in a large mason jar or simply a plastic container.

Use the mixture once a week in the shower after you cleanse with soap.

Note: You can also add drops of aromatic oils such as peppermint, lavender or lemon to your mix. Start with a few drops – these oils are quite concentrated!

It can be hard to know where to start when you are planning a renovation for your kitchen. There are so many different styles out there and each serves a different purpose and will evoke a certain emotional response—let’s face it, our kitchens are where emotions can sometimes run high and sometimes be full of love. Taking the time to really think through your redesign will ensure that your kitchen’s end result will be something you and your family are happy with.

First rule of thumb is don’t be afraid to ask for help. When you are choosing materials be sure to have all of your questions answered about the material. Questions such as durability, maintenance, ease of cleaning, etc. These are the types of questions that will be more practical but very important when you are making your decision. You and your family’s lifestyles may dictate you choosing one material over another but you’ll never know if you don’t first ask the questions. We are more than happy to help you during the remodeling process — contact Dolphin Carpet with any questions!

Once you have your materials chosen you will want to start thinking about the colors you want to use, such as your paint, tile, natural stone, decorations. All of these should have a thematic threat that ties them together. Your natural preferences will dictate this, but look to things in your life for inspiration if you can’t come up with an idea. Perhaps you are an outdoorsy person. You might think about using more natural colors with pops of color to keep it fresh. You might also think about a more modern design if you tend to like clean lines and simple coloring.

Finally, once you’ve decided on a theme for your kitchen you will want to start obtaining samples and bringing them to your kitchen so that you can see what they look like when they are seen under your kitchen’s natural lighting and light at night. You may be surprised by how a material you were certain would be the right now will look completely different under your kitchen’s lighting.

Once you’ve narrowed down your materials it’s time to start ordering everything and preparing for the renovation! Come on down to Dolphin Carpet and Tile and let our experienced professionals help you choose the right materials for your kitchen renovation.

Traveling with a small child or a baby can be quite scary. It does get easier the more you do it. However once you think you have figured out the tricks, BAM they have evolved and there are new sets of obstacles, along with the old ones! Here are the basics that I have used on every flight with my daughter. No you do not need to bring all the passengers ear plugs and candy!

Bring a variety of snacks. You can bring food through security so pack enough to have extra. Some snacks will end up on the floor and inevitably in the trash, so make sure you have plenty. As a side note, try not to pack too many sugary items. Hopefully your little one will take a nap once the plane takes off, so do yourself a favor and pack some saltines. I like to bring apple slices, Cheerios’ (just be prepared to pick them up off the floor), graham crackers, cheese slices and baby carrots. Keep messy foods and snacks out of the equation for flights.

Don’t forget to pack something to drink during takeoff, during the flight and for the landing! Drinks are permitted through security when you are traveling with a baby or small child. Having something to drink during takeoff and landing, is imperative to keeping their little ears from popping.

Bring the stroller! A smaller umbrella stroller is a better size, more suited for flying. You can check it free at the gate, then it will be waiting for you on the gate when you get off the plane. If you have a tight connection, you may have to abandon the stroller if it hasn’t been brought up to the gate. Sometimes you have to wait for a few minutes the luggage people bring it up from under the plane. That is why a smaller $20 umbrella stroller is the best option for the airport. If you have a long layovers or direct flight, then you can bring your everyday stroller as long as it folds up. The stroller is handy to have while walking through the airport and keeps your kid from running everywhere!

Make sure and pack a change of clothes. There could be spillage, vomiting and other unmentionable occurrences that soil your child’s clothing. Do yourself a favor and have a backup outfit for your little one and a fresh shirt for yourself if you have room in your carry on.

Ready to transform yourself from plain to pretty? If so, you will love this list. Every point of advice relies on things you likely already have lying around the house. Even if you don’t, all of the remedy ingredients are very inexpensive. Enjoy!

Vaseline

Eye makeup remover

Eyelash conditioner

Lipgloss

Tame split ends

Mix with lipstick to create a quick cream blush

Lightly gloss onto to teeth to prevent lipstick from sticking to them

Rub on pulse points, underneath perfume to make it last longer

Soften knees and elbows

Apple Cider Vinegar

Run it through hair once a month to get rid of product build up

Use as a facial toner after cleansing

Hair detangler, especially for coarse hair

Removes warts and skin tags, use with a band aid for a week

Lighten dark spots, sun spots, and age spots

Coconut Oil

A super silky leg shaving aid

Body deodorizer, it has antibacterial properties

Strengthen and soften cuticles and fingernails

Lip gloss

Double duty premium makeup – using the good stuff in multiple ways

Mascara

as eyeliner, just use a fine tipped brush

to cover grey roots if you have dark hair and can’t get in to the salon

Blush

use it as eye shadow as well

Light color, shimmery eye shadow as a lip highlighter on top of your lipstick

Lemons and acidic fruits

Rub lemon on dark, hyper-pigmented elbows

Use as a facial toner after cleansing

Lighten dark spots, sun spots, and age spots

Subtly highlight hair by combining lemon juice with water in a spray bottle and misting

Slice of pineapple as loofah in the shower

Slice an apple and gently rub on face, the pectin helps to prevent acne

Create a mixture of strawberries and baking soda and use it to whiten your teeth

Moving is generally a topic of stress and confusion, but the good news it really doesn’t have to be. Changing locations of a home or apartment has more positive attributes than negative ones. Being forced to move because of an extenuating circumstance? Find out why moving is healthy for you and your family.

Relocating within the town you live in or to a new town is healthy. Given where you were living before you have had the chance to realize what aspects are important for you. You have had the time to realize what places you need to be near, like a certain grocery store, library or school. Moving gives you the ability to choose what areas to live near. Moving to a new town gives new cultural insight to your life and family. It is better to learn how to adjust to change, especially since life is ever changing. Accepting change and making the best of it will make you a better person.

Living in a current residence has opened your eyes to what you wish you had that would make your life easier. Maybe you desire a larger kitchen because making meals for your family is your responsibility. Maybe you need a designated office space because you work from home and get distracted easily. Whatever the case may be, moving allows you to seek out necessary criteria for your new residence.

Purging really should be done once a year, but most people don’t because they have gotten too comfortable. If you don’t purge belongings, things pile up and get stored in many different places of the home. When this happens you have a hard time finding things and forget what you have. Purging allows you to take inventory of your belongings and either allow you easier access to relative items or allows you to let go of things you have not used in a long time.

Moving allows you to get rid of old out dated items that you may sell online or in a yard sale. Once you have gotten rid of the old you can by newer up to date items. You also have a chance to freshen up your interior furnishings. Changing or altering your interior style makes you feel anew. Look ahead and be excited and don’t look back!

Changing residences gives you the ability to live a better life by allowing you to choose a better location, select a home or apartment that better fits your current day to day life and allows you to clear the clutter. Moving does not have to be sad or stressful, it is what you make of it so decide to make positive changes for you and your family!

Ancient civilizations have been drinking teas for thousands of years. Enjoying a hot cup of tea is not just a tradition, but also has many health benefits. If you are not a tea drinker, you are missing out on a wonderful beverage. Find out why you should be drinking tea as part of your diet!

Many types of teas are loaded with anti-oxidants, which are perfect for fighting off sicknesses and keeping disease development at bay. Green tea is a great way to provide these healthy antioxidants. This type of tea increases energy with low amounts of caffeine, stimulates brain function and helps maintain concentration. Some black and white teas provide a healthy amount of antioxidants as well.

Certain teas (green, black and white) can help reduce inflammation; which is caused by dangerous diseases that attack the body, like diabetes and cancer. The above teas can also help by lowering stress hormones.

If degenerative diseases run in your family, like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s then you should be drinking green tea. There is a healthy compound, EGCG, found in Green tea. This helps by protecting regions of the brain that processes and recalls information.

Despite family history, there are so many benefits to drinking green teas and other types of herbal teas. Substituting an herbal tea with a low to no amounts of added sugar is beneficial to staying fuller longer, promoting better digestion and staying trim. Soda has a ridiculous amount of added sugar, which tends to cause an accumulation of belly fat. Tea on the other hand helps maintain a healthy amount of insulin that regulates the body’s blood sugar levels. Tea has zero grams of sugar, zero calories and no carbs. Aside from water, no other beverage can say that.

Herbal teas truly help maintain a balanced and healthier diet. Start your love affair with tea by drinking at least one cup a day. As you become fonder of it, add a cup of tea with meals. Even substitute your afternoon pick me up drink, with a warm cup of herbal tea. There are sleepy time teas that help the body relax before going to bed at night. This helps with getting a better night’s sleep!